Portable display systems are used extensively at trade shows as well as in other commercial and business settings for product promotion, information and advertising. The known portable display frames are foldable for compact transport and reconfigurable or unfoldable to a display position. An example of this type of portable display system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,436,135. Generally, in portable display systems of this type, a plurality of display panels are individually mounted for display by separate rectangular frames which are hinged together to collectively provide a large display area when the frames are unfolded. The individual display panels are gripped at their outer edges by inner edges of the rectangular frames which typically have a channel configuration into which the display panel edges seat to afford a secure mounting for the display panels. Each display panel, when secured within its respective rectangular frame, has the appearance of a "framed" picture due to the substantial width of each of the four sides of the rectangular frame which are entirely visible when the display panel is mounted within the rectangular frame. Collectively, the display panels, when mounted in their respective rectangular frames, resemble a group of "framed" pictures which are hinged together along the outer edges of their respective rectangular mounting frames.
A serious disadvantage of the foregoing display system is that when it is unfolded and erected into its display position, the plurality of panels which make up the display surface are separated by a grid pattern of frame members, providing a visually disrupted display surface. An additional problem with this type of display system involves the removal and replacement of the display panels when it is desired to change the display, which is not a simple task since each panel is seated or captured at its outer edges within the channels of its associated frame. Removal and/or replacement of display panels requires disassembly and reassembly of the panel frames and thus is not conducive to a rapid, on-site change of display.
Another type of known display system has a plurality of support members pivotally joined to one another to provide a collapsible articulated structure that is portable. Display systems of this general type are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,471,548 and 4,658,560. These display systems utilize magnetic strips to affix display panels to the display framework; however, the display panels either lie in overlapping edgewise relation to one another or are spaced apart along their vertical edges, thus leaving the frame members visible.